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OPINION

Legislation a first step in easing harsh realities in the lives of many LGBTQ youth

The report assesses LGBTQ equality in 506 cities, including 57 in California.

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Students from local high school LGBTQ organizations march in the 2016 Palm Springs Pride Parade. Stephen Smyth champions a bill in the Legislature that he says could improve the fortunes of LGBTQ youth.(Photo: Zoe Meyers/ The Desert Sun)Buy Photo

We toss them out on the street each day as though they were something less than precious, less than our sons and daughters, our brothers and sisters.

And we do so at an alarming rate. Numerous studies confirm that while they comprise only 7 percent of the general population, as many as 40 percent of the 4.2 million youths experiencing homelessness nationally are LGBTQ. Which means they’re vastly more likely to face homelessness than their heterosexual, cisgender counterparts.

LGBTQ youths are also overrepresented in foster care. A 2012 study by the UCLA School of Law’s Williams Institute and the True Colors Fund found LGBTQs comprise nearly 20 percent of those in Los Angeles foster placements. Again, significantly outnumbering the total percent found in the general population.

Both on the streets and in foster care, these individuals face increased risks for substance abuse, mental heath issues, and sexual exploitation.

Among factors driving them to the streets, the Williams Institute found that the majority ran away or were forced out due to their sexual and gender identities. Indeed, as multiple peer-reviewed studies have revealed, LGBTQs are more likely than average to experience physical abuse from a parent or guardian. At the same time, according to the American Bar Association, the majority of LGBTQ youths occupying group homes experience verbal and physical harassment, while over three--quarters are either removed or run away due to anti-LGBTQ hostility. Those who stay face a 1-in-5 chance of ending up homeless anyway once they “age out” at 21.

While it’s true we don’t all toss our kids out like trash — just as we don’t all harbor fear, hate, and ignorance toward those with sex and gender differences — we nevertheless share culpability for such injustice when we willfully choose to do nothing to stop it.

The bill states that California has the second highest rate of youth homelessness in the nation, that LGBTQ youth are disproportionately represented in that total, and these numbers is rising. The bill cleared the State Senate in May and is currently under review in the Assembly’s Appropriations Committee.

Unfortunately, the proposed legislation only mentions LGBTQ youth briefly and contains no language specifically advocating for their unique needs. Still, the bill’s passage represents a crucial first step in tackling the problem.

While allocating funds and carving out policies helps those already on the streets, the underlying causes of youth homelessness remain. In local gatherings and internet chats one often encounters heated discussions about the blight of homelessness and its risks to our security and public image here in the desert.

So long as we continue to treat our LGBTQ children like a used razor or empty carton of milk, their homelessness will persist. And as homeless youths are five times more likely to become homeless adults, they’ll likely be joining the contingent of unsightly unfortunates, daily pushing shopping carts around our beautifully manicured parks and sidewalks.

Stephen Smyth(Photo: Courtesy)

Email Stephen Smyth, an MSW candidate studying at USC's Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work, at ssmyth@usc.edu.